Hogwarts ? Yeah,right
by StarWarsRules
Summary: Amber Aborior gets accepted into Hogwarts, and everything is going well. Until she is sent a mysterious necklace with dark powers, and gets caught up in the chamber of secrets mystery. Set during book 2 Please read and review
1. Letters from Owls and Magical surprises

Chapter One: Letters from Owls and Magical surprises

Amber Aborior was your average, typical ten-year-old girl. But she, of course, did not believe that.

Being the only child of rich, successful parents, she considered herself above-average, and acted that way. She wouldn't call herself stuck-up, just better than people with less money. That's how all of her rich friends acted, and their attitudes had worn off on her.

Despite her being above-average, she would have to agree that her looks were not. After all, there was nothing extraordinary about long brown hair, hazel eyes, and fair skin with only a few freckles.

So all in all, Amber was somewhat happy. Being the daughter of wealthy parents wasn't, contrary to what she bragged to friends, "all that." Every day was the same: wake up, eat breakfast, go to school, do homework, eat dinner, and then go back to bed. So when summer came up, Amber grew excited, because not only did summer mean no school, but also her eleventh birthday.

But to her utter disappointment, her birthday came and went without the excitement that she had hoped for. True, she had a huge party with all of her friends and got more presents then she really needed, but that's what happened every year. That was nothing special to her.

Surprisingly, something did shatter the dullness of summer about a week after her party. It happened like this:

It was a typical day, though rather hot for England, which Amber liked. (Despite living in England for her whole life, she had never grown fond of colder weather and loved summers). Amber was lying sprawled out on her bed, every window in her room wide open, and reading a thick book--or at least pretending to. In reality, she was daydreaming about an exciting adventure. It was a way to distract from the dullness of her life.

Suddenly, a shriek came from outside.

Amber looked up in time to see a large, tawny owl fly in through one of the open windows and land on her dresser. Since she'd never had a pet of any kind, Amber wasn't sure what to make of the large animal in her large, tidy bedroom and was unsure of what to do.

But before she could think of anything, the owl spread its wings and took off again. It flew just above her head, dropped something, then turned around and flew out the window.

After watching the bird leave in amazement, Amber glanced at what the owl had dropped: it was a letter.

_Curious, I always thought it was only pigeons that did that,_ she thought, picking up the envelope and turning it over. The stylish cursive on the cover read:

_Ms. A. Aborior Third room on the right  13 Hillsworth, Farnam_

Inside it read:

_Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft And Wizardry Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (Order of Merlin, First class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)_

_Dear Ms. Aborior,  _

_We are pleased to inform you that you have a been awarded a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please see the enclosed list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on the 1st of September.  _

_We await your owl by no later than the 31st of July.  _

_Yours sincerely,  _

_Minerva McGonagall Deputy Headmistress_

Hogwarts? Witchcraft? Owls? A thousand questions burned in Amber's mind.

_Is this for real?_ she asked herself out loud, and then a sudden thought struck her mind: _Am I being pranked?_

She looked around, half-expecting people with cameras to pop out…or even just one person who would tell her this was all a big practical joke. When no one came, Amber rose and exited her room.

"Mum!" she called, walking down the long hall toward her parents' room. "I just got a weird letter!"

"What's that, dear?" her mother, Sara, asked as Amber entered the large room. "Something about a letter?"

"Yes. From an owl."

"A what?" Sara looked up sharply from her work.

"An owl, you know…a big bird that flies…" Amber explained slowly.

"Let me see the letter." Her mother had grown pale, and she held out her hand.

Amber handed the letter to her, and Sara skimmed it quickly. A look of surprise and happiness crossed her face.

"Oh, Amber!" she exclaimed. "You've been accepted!"

It was Amber's turn to grow pale. "You mean, this is for real?" she asked shakily.

"Of course it's real...Oh! I need to call your father!" Sara exclaimed, making a dive for the telephone and dialing quickly. "John! You'll never guess what! She's been accepted...I know!...Of course...Okay...Bye!" Her mother clapped her hands excitedly, acting as excited as if she were the one going.

"So, you and Dad knew about this...Hogwarts?" Amber asked suspiciously. "How come you didn't tell me? Are you witches and wizards? Am I-"

"Hold it! Too many questions!" her mother interrupted "Yes, your father and I know about Hogwarts, but no, we're not witches or wizards. Your grandparents were, though. Despite that, your father and I never showed any magical abilities and did not get accepted. We thought that the same would happen to you, so we didn't tell you about it. We didn't want you to end up disappointed." Her mother hopped up and said, "I'll be right back!"

"So I'm going to be a...witch?" Amber muttered incredulously when she was alone. Setting herself on her mother's bed, she took a deep breath and thought about all that her mother had told her--particularly about the whole "magical abilities" thing. Had she shown magical abilities? How would she know?

A few moments later, her mother came back.

"Ok!" she said breathlessly. "I've moved my schedule around a bit, so tomorrow we're going shopping!"

"Great, Mom," Amber smiled, deciding not to voice her other questions yet. They could wait.

After all, she had wanted a more interesting life, and now she was going to get it.

After all, she had wanted a more interesting life, and now she was going to get it.


	2. Wizard Banks and Wands

Chapter 2: Wizard banks and Wands

"Tell me where we're going again?" Amber asked her mother, who was busy gathering her coat, car keys, and other necessities.

"Diagon Alley," Sara replied absently. "It's in London."

"I thought you said it was hidden," Amber reminded her, beginning to grow confused.

"Hidden in London...okay, let's go," Sara said, heading for the door.

Amber followed, carrying the supplies letter that had been sent from Hogwarts.

The drive there was rather uneventful. It looked and felt like any trip to London. After getting out of the car and walking in what seemed like no particular direction for thirty minutes, Amber grew impatient.

"Are we almost there--wherever 'there' is?" Amber asked her mother, who kept glancing at random shops and buildings.

"Hmm," was all Sara said. After fifteen more minutes, she finally stopped at a small pub between a bookstore and a record shop. 'The Leaky Cauldron' read the weather-beaten sign above it.

"This is it?" Amber asked, half in surprise, half in disgust. "A pub?"

"Not just a pub, a wizard's pub...I hope," Sara muttered, glancing at the grubby building warily before actually entering it.

The inside of the building was just as bad as the outside: shabby, musty, and dark. Despite that, the pub was filled with people—people in strange clothing. Amber followed her mother to the barman, who looked as dirty and rundown as the building. He glanced at her mother suspiciously.

"Can I help you, M'am?" he asked, looking at her as warily as she was at him.

She cleared her throat importantly, the way she always did before she was about to give a speech, and said, "I'm Mrs. Aborior"

"Oh, yes," the barman nodded. "Your mother-in-law said you'd be coming"

"Good!" Sara smiled and looked expectantly. "And...?"

"She asked me to let you into Diagon Alley," he finished. "Seeing how you can't. Right this way."

"What did he mean, 'You can't'?" Amber asked her mother as they followed the barman to the back of the pub.

"Only wizards can get into Diagon Alley…or something like that," Sara explained, wrinkling her nose in distaste as they passed a man smoking a long pipe.

The barman led them to a walled courtyard, and to Amber's delight, took out his wand and tapped several bricks. Her mother jumped in surprise as the bricks parted, leaving a hole big enough for them to step through.

"Thank you," her mother smiled politely, stepping hesitantly through. Amber followed her quickly.

Looking around, Amber never felt so overwhelmed and excited. _This is definitely not a joke,_ she thought as she glanced around at all the different shops filled with, brooms, cauldrons, wands...

She was snapped back into reality--which at the moment wasn't too bad--when her mother said, "Well, first things first. Money."

"Money?" Amber repeated, frowning. "What do you mean? You already have money."

"Not wizard money. We'll have to get some at some 'wizard' bank," Sara replied and, when seeing Amber's agape mouth, quickly explained. "Your grandmother's letting us use some of hers. She keeps it at the bank."

"Oh!" Amber said, following her mother toward the bank, which was a tall, white building. They entered, and the first thing they noticed was the strange, short, pointy-eared, wrinkly people.

"What are they, Mum?" Amber asked nervously, noticing that they had long claws and pointy sharp teeth.

"Um, I believe your grandmother said they were _goblins_." She whispered the name as if she were afraid someone might hear her say it. Walking up to the counter, she put on a fake smile. "Hello," she greeted a goblin who was writing something in a large book.

He looked up and seemed rather annoyed at being interrupted. "Yes?" he asked impatiently, sneering slightly.

This, however, did not seem to put her mother off, who kept on smiling. "I'm Mrs. Aborior, I've come to withdraw some money from my mother-in-law's vault," she explained, holding up key that Amber had never seen before. The goblin nodded, and then yelled to a passing goblin, "Sorington! Take these people down to the vaults."

The trip to the vaults was more exciting then Amber thought it was going to be. While she enjoyed riding in the fast cart, her mother looked sick and was extremely grateful when they finally got off. The goblin unlocked the vault and the door opened, displaying mountains of foreign-looking coins. Her mother swept in, avoiding the large cobwebs, and filled her purse with coins.

She made a face as they got back into the cart. "Finally!" Sara sighed, taking a deep breath as they exited the bank. "The cart was going at a ridiculous speed! Now, what do we need to buy?"

Shopping was much more fun then being in the dusty bank. After getting her robes, school books, and equipment, Amber glanced at the list. "The only thing left is a wand."

They stopped at the first wand shop they found, "Ollivanders."

The inside of the shop was, to Sara's dismay, also dusty. She quickly handed Amber some coins. "I'm going to wait outside. You go on and buy a wand."

Amber stepped into the shop and walked to the counter, where an old man sat polishing a long wand.

"Good afternoon, Ms. Aborior," he greeted her without looking up.

"Uh, hello," Amber frowned. "How did you know my name?"

"You look just like you grandmother did when she was your age." He replied casually glancing at her. Amber was surprised how bright and pale his eyes where. "So does your mother, pity she never ended up going to Hogwarts." He added setting the wand down carefully.

"I'm looking for a wand," she explained, then realized how stupid that sounded. Of course she was looking for a wand! Why else would she be in a wand shop?

The man nodded. "Of course. Now let me see…" He turned around, scanning the lines of boxes, which Amber guessed were filled with wands. " Phoenix, of course," he muttered to himself. "But which one...?" Walking around, he finally stopped, pulled out one of the boxes, and handed it to her. "Maple, ten inches, phoenix feather."

Amber carefully took the wand out of the box and held it, unsure what she was suppose to do.

"Wave it," he explained as if he read her mind.

She did so, and nothing happened.

Frowning, the man turned and pulled out another box. "Pine, twelve inches, phoenix feather."

Again nothing. This happened several more times, Amber was about to give up when he handed her another wand. "Here's a strange wand I found in Egypt: cherry, thirteen inches, mummy dust."

Amber raised her eyebrows, she remembered reading something about mummy dust having significant power or meaning in Egypt. She always had a strange interest in Egypt ever since she began learning about it in school two years ago. Holding the wand up, she waved it, and to her surprise, a small flame appeared at the end.

The man smiled. "Interesting, I never really thought the wand would work. Tricky business using mummy dust. Not done anymore."

After placing the wand back in the box, Amber handed the man some money and left, thinking about what he had said.

Sara was waiting for her outside, and to Amber's surprise, she was holding a cat. As soon as Amber got close enough her mother, Sara quickly put the cat in her daughter's arms, took out a handkerchief, and sneezed several times.

"Mum, why'd you get me a cat? You're allergic!" Amber exclaimed, though she was really pleased that she had. It was a long, skinny cat with tan fur and bright golden eyes. It reminded her of the cats she had seen in pictures of Egypt.

"Well, the letter said you could get a pet, and you're _not_ getting a toad. Frankly, I have no idea what you'd do with an owl," Sara explained. "Anyway, it's late. We'd better get going."

Amber nodded and followed her mother, thinking about what an adventure Diagon Alley had been.


	3. Running through Bricks and ridding Scarl

Chapter Three: Running Through Brick and ridding a Scarlet Train

"I can't believe I'm going to Hogwarts today!" Amber exclaimed, jumping up and down as she waited for her parents to get ready three months after receiving The Letter. She'd been up since 5:23am and was extremely hyper.

"Are you ready yet?" she asked her mother through her parents' bedroom door for the fifth time in two minutes.

"Almost!" came the same reply she'd gotten five times before.

Amber sighed in frustration and stopped bouncing for a minute. "If you don't hurry up, we'll be late!" she reminded, hoping it would hurry her parents along.

Perhaps the last comment worked, because a minute later they finally opened their bedroom door and came out.

"Finally! Now let's go!" Amber exclaimed and began to hop again.

"All right! Just calm down first." her father John sighed. "The train doesn't leave until eleven. It's only nine-thirty."

Her mother, who was not a morning person, yawned loudly. "Let's just go before she explodes. Besides, we need to get there early so we can meet your mother."

"Grandma's going to be there?" Amber asked in surprise. "How come you didn't tell me before?"

"Yes, she's going to be there. How else are we supposed to find this 'Platform Nine and Three-Quarters?'" John explained. "And we _did_ tell you, though I don't think you heard us through your shouts of 'Only one more week!'

Amber blushed slightly "Oh...Well, let's go! I can't wait to see Grandma!"

- - - - - - -

"Look, there's Grandma!" was the first thing Amber exclaimed when they reached the train station. She quickly ran and hugged her grandmother tightly.

For the first time, Amber noticed what she was wearing. Before she had heard of Hogwarts, she thought that was just the strange way her grandmother dressed, but now she realised they where wizard robes.

"Amber!" her grandmother, Briana Aborior smiled, hugging her back. "My, you've grown. And finally going to Hogwarts!"

"Yes-I-can't-wait-where's-the-platform-is-it-really-nine-and-three-quarters?" Amber began to talk excitedly, not pausing for a breath as she bombarded her grandmother with questions.

"Amber, slow down!" her grandmother laughed. "All in good time. Now, where's that son of mine?"

When she was done greeting her son and his wife, she turned to Amber. "Now, to that platform. You don't want to be late on your fist year."

Amber nodded. "Of course not, but where's the platform? All I see is nine and ten."

"That's the magic of it," her grandmother smiled. "Follow me."

Amber followed her grandmother to the barrier between Platforms Nine and Ten, and listened with much interest as she explained what Amber needed to do.

"Ok, let me get this straight. I need to run _into_ the barrier?" Amber asked in surprise.

"Yes, but don't worry. You'll come out the other side," her grandmother assured her.

With a shaky smile, Amber said good-bye to her parents (who of course couldn't go through the barrier), pushed her cart full of luggage forward, closed her eyes, and ran.

She trusted her grandmother more then anyone else in the world, but as she ran she couldn't help but wonder if what she was doing was right. She braced herself for the impact that might come; to her astonishment, it didn't.

When she opened her eyes, she was on a platform filled with people, some dressed in the same robes she had seen in Diagon Alley, others in outfits similar to the one she was wearing. Taking a deep breath, she looked around some more. There on the tracks was a bright, scarlet train that looked like it had popped out of movie from the eighteen hundreds.

"The 'Hogwarts Express,'" she read aloud. "It's beautiful."

"Isn't it?" her grandmother, who had come through as well, asked. "But no time for looking around, you'd better find yourself a compartment before they're all taken."

Amber nodded and helped her grandmother carry the luggage aboard. The rest was a blur of walking up and down the corridors, looking for an empty compartment. They soon found one, and Amber said good-bye to her grandmother. She left, and a few minutes later the train began to move.

Still in half a daze, Amber sat down. _I can't believe I'm actually going to a school of magic!_ Before she could think or say anything else, the compartment door slid open. In walked three people.

The first two looked almost identical: tall, muscular, and not very intelligent. The third, nearly a head shorter then the other two, had very light blond hair, piercing grey eyes, and a rather snobby look on his face.

With out bothering to ask whether they could sit there, they began putting their luggage up. Despite the fact that Amber wanted to meet other wizard students, she couldn't help thinking that it was rather rude of them not to ask whether they could sit with her.

After seating themselves, they finally seemed to notice Amber.

"Hello," the boy said, raising his eyebrow as her looked her up and down. "I'm Draco Malfoy, this is Crabbe and Goyle." He nodded toward the two other boys.

"I'm Amber Aborior," she told him politely, wondering whether he would continue to talk to her or not.

"Is this your first year here?" Obviously he was going to continue for a while longer at least.

"Yes," she answered without even looking at him.

"This is my second year. I'm in Slytherin. Any idea which you're going to be in?" Draco kept talking.

"Uh, I'm not sure," Amber frowned. _What's Slytherin?_ she wondered to herself as Draco continued to talk. "What?" she asked, looking up.

"I asked, are you a pureblood? Aborior sounds like it is," Draco repeated.

"Um, my grandparents are Magical, or whatever it's called, but my parents aren't," Amber explained, hoping that was what he was asking.

"Oh." He suddenly didn't seem as friendly as before. Amber wondered why he stopped talking.

"Is it important?" she asked curiously.

"Uh, not exactly," he mumbled softly.

Amber had to lean forward to catch it. Deciding he wasn't going to say anything more, she glanced at Crabbe and Goyle wondering if they would talk to her. They however, where to busy stuffing themselves with some strange looking candy, that they must have gotten while she was talking to Draco. Sighing she turned to look out the window.

It was going to be a long journey.


End file.
